Some balancing tips and what made the miles fly by!

Today I am sharing my tips for balancing being a busy running mom! I’ve got a pretty big responsibility over here—> I’m in charge of showing Brooke the world and loving her to pieces. I spend my days helping her to learn and grow. I put in a good amount of time into blogging (and some new fun projects coming out in a few months), my family and marathon training makes sure to keep me on my toes! Here are a five things that I do in order to attempt to make it all work together nicely.

-Brooke and I have a good trade-off going on over here. I get my run in (usually on the treadmill) each morning and then she gets to pick what we do right after I run. Win-win:) Her usual answer is the park so as soon as I am done running, I change clothes and we jet off to the park. I NEED to eat something after a run so having something extremely easy to grab and eat/drink on the go makes this arrangement that we’ve got going on work nicely. These Organic Protein Smoothies are my favorite. Fifteen grams of protein (and 200 calories) help me to get in the nutrients that I need in order to help my body start doing it’s job—> recovering after a run so I can run again the next day.

-I think we sometimes think that cutting into our sleep time will help us to accomplish everything on our to do list. Whenever I do this it takes me so much longer to get simple things done the next day because I am so exhausted. It also decreases my quality of life… being tired all of the time just hurts! Set a bedtime for yourself and stick to it. You will wake up in a much better mood with more energy to get everything done on your list. Sleep should always be one of our top priorities in order to be effective in all of our other roles.

-Multitask when it comes to fitting in the little things that will help your running—> I like to stretch out while we are at the park. Foam roll when I watch tv at night. Get some planking in at the same time I go through emails on my phone. Practice positive thinking about your next race while driving around town. Don’t wash your hair so often (okay, that’s just me but it does save a lot of time to get everything else done).

-Ask for help when you need it. It is hard for a lot of us to admit we need help at different points in our lives when things get really crazy. Letting other people help out every now and then can really help you when life feels hectic. Isn’t that kind of our purpose… to help each other out? Also, sometimes when I feel overwhelmed with to-do lists and attempting to balance life, pausing to do something nice for somebody else always magically makes the day way better.

-I try to always have fresh veggies on hand at home. I actually like to buy my veggies in bulk at Costco. This way I am motivated to really plow through the veggies in order to not waste a bite (I refuse to throw food away so I make sure to eat everything we buy before it goes bad:)

Always having veggies at home makes it easy to put together quick healthy meals. Today I cut those beautiful mini peppers in half and filled each one with some leftover rice and shredded chicken. Baked them for 15 minutes at 400 degrees. Topped with some salsa and dipped them into guac. I am pretty sure I am going to have the same thing for dinner.

Brooke decided to wake up much earlier than usual because she had some phone calls to make. We got back into my bed for a bit to make up for the early wake-up call. PS all the cool kids still wear retainers at the age of 29.

10 easy miles on the treadmill today that flew by because I had the amazing Rachelle to talk to for half of it. She was sporting her Boston jacket from a few years ago which made me even more excited for the race! Today I recruited her to do my 22 miler with me later on this week which guarantees those threeish hours out on the road to be a good time.

You know how we all have a few things that we are extremely bad at? Scrapbooking or being creative in any way is one of mine. We have a scrapbook thing to get done for a friend and so we had to make some extremely tough choices at the store today. Wish me luck. Let’s be honest… I’m going to have to hire my niece to do this for me.

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What is keeping you busy these days? Any tips on keeping your running and life balanced?

Are you good at crafts? Scrapbooking? Do you enjoy it? If you do, feel free to come over right now.

Do you feel like you make your sleep a priority or do you feel like a zombie most of the time?

Last person that you ran with?! How many times a week do you run with people?

monique

I usually eat mine pretty quickly but I keep it in a ziplock and try to get out every drop of air before zipping it back up. This process usually takes me about 5 minutes but it is worth it because I hate when guac goes brown!

Shirley

Math runner

If you have a fresh avacado- place the leftover portion in a plastic container with a slice of white onion. Works like a charm.
In your article you wrote, I enjoyed your “rituals” before a marathon. Can you please provide a list of what easily digestable carbs work for you.

I try to make sleep a priority and just let things go in the evenings so I can get to sleep earlier. I eat better, I’m more motivated and much more productive when I have a good night’s rest!

I keep lists. That way I don’t forget things coming up in the week and I can prioritize what needs to be done now and what can wait a bit. I get alot of satisfaction from checking things off the list too! :)

Life is keeping me busy these days! Between work, blogging and recovering from injury I have plenty of things to juggle and do. Thankfully I’m on the mends from injury and getting back to my normal fitness routine. Still a lot of soreness though. Recovering from an injury is 1000x harder than being injured!

I love these tips, Janae! My life is a lot less busy now, but when I was writing my master’s thesis, planning my wedding, working as a teaching assistant, searching for a job, and race training everything depended on my ability to stay balanced. You’re so right about sleep – cutting back on sleep doesn’t give us more time, it only makes it harder and take longer to complete tasks.

I’m awful at scrapbooking and any crafting. I can’t even handle going into place like Hobby Lobby because they overwhelm me so much.

I usually run by myself, although once a week I take Charlie my puggle out on a run. Sometimes my husband runs with me, although we have very different goals right now in running so it works best to run separately and then tell each other all about our runs later.

I probably make sleep way too much of a priority, and just don’t do things I should because I’m freaking tired!!

I haven’t run with that many people lately. None of my good friends are that into sports, so it’s usually with new people if I do try to be social. A couple of painfully awkward runs have scared me off because then I don’t have my “me” time in the morning!

My kids sports are keeping me busy! I am pretty diligent to run right after work while they are all at their various activities-bonus miles are my favorite! Let’s just say that my crockpot is in overdrive these days. My favorite trick is to run to a destination or run to/from their game/meet/match/etc. I got in a 20ish miler this weekend doing a to and ‘fro.

I like to think I’m crafty, but I am not. Great ideas but the production is a bit wonky.I can create recipes on the fly, though!

Sure do miss my running buddies back home! Last person I ran with was my brother!! It was awesome-he was on a business trip so we got to run together in the Netherlands (my son had a swim meet there. Coincidence in perfection!) We definitely took selfies amongst the windmills.

AmandaM

I feel like a zombie most of the time! I have no problem falling asleep early but I get up 3 times to go to the bathroom and it’s not a very sound sleep. I’d love some feedback from people who maybe once had sleep issues but are now “cured”. I know some people have never had a hard time sleeping so they can’t help me :)… and I haven’t heard from many people whose sleep was once bad and has gotten drastically better.

I cannot imagine how much time goes into a house renovation.. and on top of work! WOW! I wish I could help you on the sleep thing but maybe I don’t drink enough water so I don’t have to get up often. Or maybe I sleep walk to the bathroom.

In order to squeeze it all in during marathon training I try to schedule my social scene with friends since I often can’t do the on a whim stuff! I go to bed early when training so I get less FOMO when I can have day dates :).

Work and my boys are keeping me busy. I have no motivation to do much after dealing with 27 kindergarten kids and then coming home to two hyper boys! I love being crafty! I actually scrap booked my first sons baby book. I haven’t gotten to the second one’s yet (and he’s Brooke’s age).
My sleep is not a huge priority but I do listen to my body and go to bed when I’m tired. My wake up time is a regular 6:30 so I can’t really sleep in, even on weekends.

I love this post! Ironically I was recently interviewed for a fabulous interview series called The Balance Project about how women balance careers and family. I gave your blog a shout out as my fave website because “I love reading her down to earth blog posts about how she balances running, blogging, and being a mom.” You can check out my full interview here:http://www.susieschnall.com/the-balance-project-no-67-eileen-palma-author/

Eileen – thank you so much for spreading the love about The Balance Project. I love your interview!
And Janae, this was such a great piece. It’s so great when women are honest about the challenges of balancing work/family/personal lives so thanks for the great read. I would LOVE to feature you on The Balance Project. Please email me and I can give you all the info so you can see if it’s something you’d want to do. Thanks!! And good luck with your race!

Bets

I still wear a retainer at 28 so you’re not alone. I’m grateful I haven’t broken or lost it (knock on wood!). I’m also lacking an creativity gene and now that I’m pregnant with a girl I’m starting to worry about that a little!

Sleep is definitely my number one priority. I used to feel really self conscious when I met my boyfriend and I would stay up until 11 or later if he wanted to, but then I started falling asleep on the couch every night at 8 pm. Now I just tell him I’m going to bed when I feel like it (9:30-10ish) and he usually follows close behind!

Aww, you even look cute with your retainer in. I miss having a treadmill. I think it’s time I get a new one. I’m not a busy mom, but it is still super helpful to have one and I get way more miles in when I have a treadmill in the house.

I definitely need to start making sleep my priority. I have to get up at 5am for work, and that means I would have to go to bed at 9pm just to get in 8 hours. It’s really hard for me to go to bed that early but at the same time, like you said, I’m not as productive and generally just feel crummy if I’m really tired. So tough to find that happy medium!

I also completely agree that having food on hand is the best way to make healthy food choices. I am a dietitian and this is a big thing I stress to patients. If you’re hungry and you have simple, healthy foods waiting in your fridge for you then it’s not too difficult to make better food choices. P.S. your peppers are very pretty!

Megan D

I bought those mini peppers a few weeks ago with the intension of making that very meal…and then I never made it. I ate them all, don’t you worry, but jus not like that. And now, after seeing your picture, I want to go buy them again and make it. It looks soooo good.

I wish I would have worn my retainer. I stopped when I got married and a few months in I tried to wear it again and it wouldn’t fit #niceteethfail

I am a zombie. Always. I am the worst at getting enough sleep. I never wash my hair or get ready so you think I would have allthetime to sleep….

I have never scrapbooked and I am not crafty. Just let me cook/bake.

I got to the gym Saturday morning planning on doing the stepmill and it was in use. My friend convinced me to run next to her on the treadmill. I am pretty easily swayed so I ran 6 miles and she was the last person I ran with.

I always loved arts and crafts, still love to color and paint but I have never had patience for those scrapbooks with the fancy papers and stickers and letters and who knows what else! I had scrapbooks as a kid but nothing compared to what people do with them now!

I am always trying to keep a healthy balance between family, friends, running, and blogging.
I am not crafty at all!
I’m a pretty good sleeper, but I wake up so early.
I last ran with about 50 other people on the track this morning! I usually run with a small group of friends:)

I’m getting married in September and hoping to run my first marathon in November. Between wedding planning, training and working full time it can be easy to feel overwhelmed. Running has actually helped me balance everything.. It’s always there when I need it! And burning the extra calories doesn’t hurt so I look good in that dress :)

I work full time, mom to a 5 year old (about to be 6 in May), am a wife, and run!!!! Lucky my husband is supportive and makes sure I run! I think he is supportive because running keeps me sane and not so crazy!! LOL! As for sleep? You bet I make sure I get enough sleep, otherwise, I get a bit cranky!….. :-/

I used to work at Archivers and yes, I love to scrapbook. But I went to college for photography so I consider myself an artist. There are definite levels of scrapbooking, from amateur to professional. It takes practice and learning. There’s a lot of tricks to make your life easier and it’s so relaxing. I love it.

work is keeping me busy nowadays.. I work a lot. and I have a two year old also. So I’m kind of a pro at multi tasking. getting ready for work and stealing kisses and time with my daughter is always a must :)
oh I defenitly make sleep a priority, if I don’t, my body will without me wanting to. Last night I fell asleep at 9:30 on the couch. I’m a baby. haha.

Roxana

Hola! Interesting, I just got asked how I balance running, working and being a mom. Tuesday’s & Thursday’s are my run nights. So when we’re done with dinner & homework and my hubby Tony is smoking a cigar in the Mancave and Ace our 8 year old is on the iPad and Xbox, I go run! The weekdays are my short tempo runs. On the weekends early in the morning are my long runs and Ace is usually still asleep when I leave, and ready for breakfast when I get back. Also before I get dressed for work, I’ll do 15 minutes total of planks, sit-ups, crunches, and weights. I wash my hair every other day and use dry shampoo if I need to. Sleep is definitely a priority! I can’t function or think straight without at least 7.5 hours of sleep. I enjoy scrapbooking but I will only do it for special occasions like our trip to Italy last October. I don’t go crazy with it and use a lot momentos in the scrapbook and hand write everything.

It’s important that your family know your routine and understand how important running is to you. Balancing life, family, and running is a challenge but it can be done!

Macy

I love scrapbooking! I made one in memory of my mom recently. I also make one for all my favorite nanny families so the kids have the pictures to remember our fun times and the parents can see what they missed while they were working! Wish I could come help you, it’s my fave and currently have nothing to work on!!!

I stay busy working a full time job (with a commute that is about an hour and a half each way!) plus I do lots of freelance projects too. Then there’s taking care of my dog…lots of walks! Marathon training, and recently, rehabbing. Sports chiro twice a week for ART and Graston for my knee and then I’ll have to go to physical therapy for my torn rotator cuff (I’m always getting hurt!). Plus I spend every thursday evening and every other weekend with my boyfriend. And I have lots of friends from various parts of my life so there’s always meetups. Keeping my house clean and laundry…always doing laundry! My blog takes up a lot of time too.

I’m super creative and love to scrapbook. But never have the time. I wish I lived closer. I’d help you.

I always go to bed by 11pm the latest but tend to pass out on the sofa even before that. And alarm is always set for 6:30am.

I ran with 20,000 other people at the NYC Half on 3/15. Been running solo since then but i’m doing another half on Sunday with my friend Jane. I would say 1 time a month I run with friends.

I am so not crafty but would love to be. I can make decent things, I just never take the time to go get supplies and do it. And sleep is so important! You’re right on that. I like to practice my choreography for group fitness in my head while foam rolling. Multi-task! :)

I am keeping busy with my daughters upcoming wedding and am having to polish off my crafting skills for this. I used to be VERY crafty and then at some point I realized that I wanted less clutter in my life more than I wanted the “craft” mess and the creations. Now it is a bit of a struggle for me I don’t enjoy it much anymore.
I ALWAYS run alone, it is my meditation/me time.
I am asleep by 9pm ( or earlier) every night and up at 4. Sometimes I will wake up a bit sooner. But 7 hrs works well for me. My husband has trouble staying asleep and he says time release melatonin works well for him.

Yes, Yes, Yes, to everything in bullet number three! Planking is the best because it leaves your hands free do necessary things such as Instagram at the same time. And hair washing – that is my numero uno time saver!
Sorry – I have to wash my hair is real excuse yall!

Asking for help is such an important tip no matter what your situation! This sounds ridiculous, but what has given me more respect for single parents than ANYTHING is how overwhelmed I feel by all of the little things I can’t split up with a significant other, the grocery shopping, cable company calling, Walmart running things couples can split up. How in the world you and other single parents do what you do amazes me and I have so much respect and admiration for you!

Christina

I know! Went to a dinner at friends house after I did my hair and we ended up doing s’mores bonfire with kids was a blast but dang! I had to wash my hair again! Can’t get bonfire hair smell out without washing.

Christina

Thank you for another yummy recipe! Glad I read this. I am a zombie today. My family were traveling yesterday after being gone 4 days and I was up 3:30am with fever daughter. I am pooped. Even had an afternoon cup of coffee. Going to bed early.com and not feel guilty. I always stay up too late while kids asleep. No bueno. I had time to run today but too tired to.
Thank God tomorrow is another day!

You are doing such an amazing job of balancing everything. Every time I see you taking brooke to parks and playgrounds and museums and things like that I’m always impressed– I feel like nowadays everyone is so busy and doesn’t do cool stuff with their kids anymore! You’re doing a great job :) Also… I NEED to make those peppers asap! that sounds like an amazing combo!!

I think planning your days and multitasking are a huge win as a not only a mom but a busy mom! If you can get into a groove with those two things I think you find it will be a lot easier to get the sleep you need so you can take care of yourself and your family better. I know with me, it’s easy to stay up late after everyone goes to bed to get a “few” extra things done that could wait until tomorrow…which in turn cuts into my sleep time!! (gotta have sleep…like you said!) If I want to be a better runner and a better mom….sleep is a must. I don’t want to be a grouch! Great advice Janae! Crafts…I love crafts and I encourage my kids to be creative too. Ran with my daughter on Sunday. Normally I’m a loner.

An unpredictable work schedule always keeps me busy, so scheduling in workouts at the beginning of week is key. I decide how many days I want to run and how many days I want to do other workouts and plan them out accordingly.

I’m worthless without my 9 hours of sleep, so I always make it a priority, but once that alarm goes off, its time to be productive.

I LOVE sleeping – I think I’m a human sloth! I conk out the moment my head hits the pillow.
I totally agree with you about asking for help with you need it. We can all do with it sometimes and of course offer it too. What goes around comes around!

I absolutely love crafting and anything creative, but with a full time job and a two year old (today!) I just rarely have time. I’m still working on that whole balance thing. Oh, and complete zombie over here most of the time…

Sarah

Thank you for sharing these great tips! I have a 9 month old and I work full time, so trying to fit in training for my 10K in July and first half marathon in December is going to be tricky. Looks like super early workouts are in my future!

Gosh, I am a full time working mama with three busy kiddos (school work, soccer, and gymnastics) and then of course my own working out. I typically workout before the sun comes up and I bring work with me to the kids’ stuff so I can work while they do their sports. This way I can still manage to be in bed by 8 ;)

I love scrapbooking, I feel like I shouldn’t admit that since I’m only 18 but I’ve been doing it for years and love it! All my friends think I’m weird that I have about 3 finished scrapbooks ;)

School is keeping me insanely busy right now! I have all my exams in about 6 weeks and am stressing like crazy! I know running would probably help but I’m just so busy finding even 30 minutes to go out for a run is a struggle! I’m looking forward to lots of running during the summer vacation :)

I like to get up while everyone is still sleeping and workout. That’s my time and I don’t feel like I’m cutting into family time or being selfish. I like the quiet when i get home and can get in my stretches :)
I mainly run solo. It’s hard when you have a family to plan things with other people who have families. So when I get the time I get my sweat on my myself. :)

Great tips – thank you for sharing! I wake up early to spend time reading the Bible and doing devotionals, make breakfast for the family, and then either hit the treadmill or take my son out in the jogging stroller later that morning. The rules are similar to yours – mom gets her run in and then my son gets to pick what he wants to do :)

I used to wake up at 5 am every morning to run, then have devotional time and then breakfast, etc. but I found I was SO exhausted that I wanted to go to bed at like 8 pm! That would be cool with me, but then I miss out on time with my husband, too. I’m thankful our son is patient with me running and life seems to be semi-balanced right now. Until… our next baby arrives in a couple months. Goodbye, routine!

Good girl wearing your retainer!!! I’m 31 and in one every single night- my orthodontist says that retention is for life, and it is crucial to maintaining alignment-great job ;)
Great tips on maintaining a busy active life as a mother and a runner, multi-tasking is crucial, as is using back-up when you need it!
And your peppers look amazing, I will certainly be giving those a go this week!
Have a great day Janae!

I recognize Rachael. She used to have a blog and run in honor of her brother and I loved reading about it. She is really speedy like you I remember. It’s fun to see her in your blog :).

I also multi-task and do my foam rolling and PT exercises in front of the TV. And like you, we buy our veggies and fruits in bulk and we do not throw away. Costco is the best and they do last longer coming from there too. I don’t have any kids but it’s neat that you and Brooke have the little trade off and go to the park.

Jen - Sactown Runner

I only wish I could run in the mornings and then take my kids to the park everyday. Try working a full time 8-5 office job, with 3 kids. It’s definitely hard to squeeze in running everyday, especially right now when the sun doesn’t rise until 6:30 (by then I have to be in work/school/kid prep-mode). My lunch hour is only 30 minutes (not enough time to change, run, and change again, and then eat) so that I can get home 30 minutes earlier to my kids (6:00). After work, the commute, making dinner, giving baths, helping with homework, changing diapers, feeding babies, feeding dogs…I have energy/daylight to run maybe 3 out of 5 days of the work week, and I’m lucky if I get 3 miles in. So I was a little disappointed to read balancing tips from the type of life I envy–mostly home with your kid(s) and squeezing in time to hang out with family. It’s ok, we can’t all have that life. You are very blessed…Every since having our extra-high-needs (meaning: NEEDS HIS MOMMY) son 7 months ago, life has been so busy that I often do not get to run and it starts to drive me a little nuts!

Hi! I don’t know if I’ve ever commented before, but I love your blog; I’ve been reading for about a year now. This might be a stupid topic to come out of lurking for, but NEVER stop wearing that retainer. My ex quit wearing his and ended up having to get braces again at 35 years old! So, yeah, all the cool kids still wear theirs. I do.

Doing a 5K this weekend. I just started running, so I’m not going to be able to run it, but you sure do inspire me to keep trying. :)